Tips for Getting Better Sleep

woman sleeping

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Good sleep is one of the most neglected self-care habits. It’s easy to lose out on sleep due to being busy, having difficulty falling or staying asleep, or failing to appreciate its significance.

That said, the importance of quality sleep should not be overlooked because it drastically changes your daily experience. With adequate, restful sleep, you’ll experience higher energy levels, greater motivation, sharpened focus, and better moods. 

On the other hand, losing even an hour of sleep is enough to make you irritable, fatigued, bored, distracted, and unproductive throughout the day. This becomes dangerous when you’re put into positions of responsibility like driving a car and overseeing the safety of others.

To prevent this, you should focus on getting eight hours of refreshing sleep every night. We’ll give you some useful tips for better sleep below! 

Engage in Physical Activity

A good starting point is to engage in physical activity daily.

With almost any health-related situation, exercise is typically an effective aid. This is because physical activity is incredibly good for your body and helps keep blood flowing throughout it. 

Better blood flow translates to greater disbursement of nutrients and oxygen, which are necessary for keeping your body healthy and healing injuries. While physical activity may not cure health conditions, it does serve as a great way to alleviate symptoms. 

Exercise is also effective for helping you get good sleep. This happens in two different ways.

First, your body releases endorphins when exercising. These are the hormones responsible for a variety of functions like giving you energy and making you feel good.

One of these hormones is melatonin, which controls your sleeping function. With more melatonin in your system, the effects are more pronounced when your body is ready to sleep. 

The other way exercise promotes sleep is because it physically tires you out. Your body can only take so much in a day before you crash! 

You’re best suited to physical activity earlier in the day. This will ensure that you get the greatest boost of energy and don’t need a nap after moving around.

The activity doesn’t need to be intense. Just 30 minutes per day of anything physical is enough to make a significant difference in your ability to fall asleep at night!  

Evaluate Your Eating Habits

Next, you should evaluate your eating habits.

There are a few things to keep in mind here.

First, you should avoid eating anything large in the hours before you go to bed. This can cause a stomachache and make it difficult to fall asleep.

Second, you want to avoid caffeine in the latter half of your day. Caffeine is a stimulant that will keep you awake and can prevent sleep for several hours after consumption.

Third, you should also refrain from drinking alcohol before bed. Alcohol is also a stimulant that causes poor sleep despite making you feel tired. 

Lastly, you should consider what you eat throughout the day. You should aim to eat a balanced diet to ensure you have a steady supply of energy to get you throughout the day.

If you don’t eat well, you’ll feel tired often and may desire a nap. Napping can be useful, but it is often more harmful to your sleep cycle than beneficial. 

Focus on eating protein and limit your intake of carbs. Eating a large amount of carbs in one sitting like a bowl of pasta can quickly send you into a food coma. 

As you can see, your diet has a direct effect on your ability to sleep. Remember this and adjust your diet to promote better sleep

Consider Your Sleeping Environment

Another useful suggestion is to consider adjustments to your sleeping environment.

The two most important elements involve your bed and your bedroom. 

Assuming that you sleep for eight hours every day, you’ll spend roughly a third of your life in your bed. That’s certainly a long time, so shouldn’t you have a comfortable bed? 

Many people neglect to purchase quality bedding because it can be expensive. Have you ever seen the price of silk sheets? That said, the quality is often worth the price because it holds up, feels amazing, and you spend so much time with it that it provides greater value.

Bedding is an investment in a significant aspect of your life. While you may not be conscious and present while sleeping, your bedding does matter.

Your bedroom is also significant. It should be designed in a way that promotes good sleep rather than preventing it.

A few considerations here involve your lighting, tidiness, temperature, and the scent of your room. To create a relaxing environment, you’ll want soft lighting, a high level of organization, a cool climate with warm blankets, and a pleasant aroma.

Your environment will directly affect your ability to fall and stay asleep. Consider this and make changes that make you excited to get in bed. 

Closing Thoughts

While sleeping is crucial, it’s also easy to neglect. Lost sleep may seem harmless, but it directly impacts your ability to interact with others and get through your day. 

You are less effective when fatigued, meaning that good sleep is essential. A few tips for getting better sleep include engaging in physical activity early in your day, sticking to a healthy diet free from late-night snacks and caffeine, and cozying up your sleeping environment.

Blissful sleep is difficult to come by, but it’s certainly possible if you’re aware of all the potential factors affecting your ability to sleep. It’s worth your time and money to invest in better sleep because it makes for a happier, more effective you!